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well lets see - now that oil/gasoline prices popped like they usually do in april-may, with the just-in-time fallback as summer vacation-planning season got underway??
guess what time it is NOW folks?
its called: "wait til they begin to hit the roads in july and then WHACK-EM SEASON" !!
thats right - on top of RECORD EXPORTS causing the otherwise suddenly 'plentiful' supplies to suddenly somehow vanish for our benefit - we now see the seasonal "unexpected" event pop up once again:
Gasoline Futures Hit Four-Month High After Refinery Glitches
Slowdowns at Refineries and Worry About Demand Likely to Be Felt at Pump
"likely" ??
bet on it baybee!
HAHAHAHA!!!
on the one hand, we're swimming in gasoline, but on the other 'stockpiles' have fallen sharply?
it (the energy conspiracy) gets goofier by the day, dont it?
guess what time it is NOW folks?
its called: "wait til they begin to hit the roads in july and then WHACK-EM SEASON" !!
thats right - on top of RECORD EXPORTS causing the otherwise suddenly 'plentiful' supplies to suddenly somehow vanish for our benefit - we now see the seasonal "unexpected" event pop up once again:
Gasoline Futures Hit Four-Month High After Refinery Glitches
Slowdowns at Refineries and Worry About Demand Likely to Be Felt at Pump
"likely" ??
bet on it baybee!
NEW YORK—Gasoline futures shot to the highest level in nearly four months Friday, after a series of refinery glitches spurred concerns about the ready availability of fuel supplies.
The rally also lifted oil futures and extended a two-week rally in the petroleum market. August reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, settled 9.61 cents, or 3.2%, higher at $3.1175 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest settlement for the contract since March 18. Analysts say the rally likely portends higher prices at the pump in the coming weeks.
"It's really higher gasoline futures that count, because when was the last time you filled up your car with crude oil?" said Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, a Houston consulting firm. "If you don't have the equipment to turn that oil into gasoline, therein lies the problem."
Analysts and traders linked Friday's rise to several reports this week of production hitches at a number of U.S. refineries. Motiva Enterprises LLC on Wednesday shut a production unit at its Port Arthur refinery in Texas. The facility processes 600,000 barrels of crude oil a day into gasoline and other fuels. A Motiva spokeswoman declined to discuss the extent of the shutdown or when the production unit would be restarted.
Separately, Phillips 66 PSX +2.30% reported a production shutdown at its refinery in Ponca City, Okla., after a power outage. The refinery had resumed normal operations by Friday afternoon, a company spokesman said.
Refinery problems often boost gasoline-futures prices as traders rush to the futures market to cover potential shortfalls. If sustained, they can translate to higher prices at the pump.
"There's kind of a squeeze going on in the wholesale market," said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.
Despite the recent rally, the U.S. is brimming with spare gasoline, (??? then why are prices so high) due largely to weak demand. U.S. gasoline inventories now stand at 221 million barrels, their highest level for this time of year since 2001, according to the Energy Information Administration. However, supplies have fallen in recent weeks, whittling down the sizeable surplus.
Already, pump prices have been rising. On Friday, they rose 3.2 cents a gallon to average $3.55 a gallon nationwide, according to auto club AAA. That's the biggest one-day rise in five months and comes on the heels of this week's steep rise in oil prices. Mr. Lipow on Friday estimated that pump prices could rise another 10 cents a gallon over the next seven to 10 days.
Nymex crude has gained 15% since the start of July, as U.S. oil stockpiles have fallen sharply and new oil pipelines and railroads help bring a glut of oil once trapped in the Midwest to refineries on the Gulf Coast.
On Friday, August light, sweet crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $1.04, or 1%, to $105.95 a barrel. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange rose $1.08, or 1%, to $108.81 a barrel.
The rally also lifted oil futures and extended a two-week rally in the petroleum market. August reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, settled 9.61 cents, or 3.2%, higher at $3.1175 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest settlement for the contract since March 18. Analysts say the rally likely portends higher prices at the pump in the coming weeks.
"It's really higher gasoline futures that count, because when was the last time you filled up your car with crude oil?" said Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, a Houston consulting firm. "If you don't have the equipment to turn that oil into gasoline, therein lies the problem."
Analysts and traders linked Friday's rise to several reports this week of production hitches at a number of U.S. refineries. Motiva Enterprises LLC on Wednesday shut a production unit at its Port Arthur refinery in Texas. The facility processes 600,000 barrels of crude oil a day into gasoline and other fuels. A Motiva spokeswoman declined to discuss the extent of the shutdown or when the production unit would be restarted.
Separately, Phillips 66 PSX +2.30% reported a production shutdown at its refinery in Ponca City, Okla., after a power outage. The refinery had resumed normal operations by Friday afternoon, a company spokesman said.
Refinery problems often boost gasoline-futures prices as traders rush to the futures market to cover potential shortfalls. If sustained, they can translate to higher prices at the pump.
"There's kind of a squeeze going on in the wholesale market," said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.
Despite the recent rally, the U.S. is brimming with spare gasoline, (??? then why are prices so high) due largely to weak demand. U.S. gasoline inventories now stand at 221 million barrels, their highest level for this time of year since 2001, according to the Energy Information Administration. However, supplies have fallen in recent weeks, whittling down the sizeable surplus.
Already, pump prices have been rising. On Friday, they rose 3.2 cents a gallon to average $3.55 a gallon nationwide, according to auto club AAA. That's the biggest one-day rise in five months and comes on the heels of this week's steep rise in oil prices. Mr. Lipow on Friday estimated that pump prices could rise another 10 cents a gallon over the next seven to 10 days.
Nymex crude has gained 15% since the start of July, as U.S. oil stockpiles have fallen sharply and new oil pipelines and railroads help bring a glut of oil once trapped in the Midwest to refineries on the Gulf Coast.
On Friday, August light, sweet crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $1.04, or 1%, to $105.95 a barrel. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange rose $1.08, or 1%, to $108.81 a barrel.
on the one hand, we're swimming in gasoline, but on the other 'stockpiles' have fallen sharply?
it (the energy conspiracy) gets goofier by the day, dont it?
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